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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27225403">welcome to the final show, hope you're wearing your best clothes</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/em_23/pseuds/em_23'>em_23</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Julie and The Phantoms (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M, M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 08:48:00</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,511</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27225403</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/em_23/pseuds/em_23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“Now or never, right?” Luke’s laugh was breathless as he looked back to Julie, pulling her in close and pressing a kiss to her hair, closing his eyes as he nodded, his tense shoulders relaxing. </p><p>or </p><p>the three (ghost) members of sunset curve crossing over.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Alex/Willie (Julie and The Phantoms), Julie Molina/Luke Patterson, Nick/Reggie (Julie and The Phantoms)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>115</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>welcome to the final show, hope you're wearing your best clothes</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>title taken from Sign of the Times - Harry Styles. </p><p>I'd recommend listening on repeat, if you want extra angst and heartbreak.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Alex had been the first to go, out of the three of them. </p><p>It had been uneventful, the five of them in Julie’s studio, four years after the boys had first appeared to her. </p><p>With Luke on one side and Reggie on the other, their hands clasped as he smiled, tears blurring his vision, but not enough to see who was waiting for him on the other side. </p><p>“Willie.” He breathed, eyes fixed straight ahead, unfocused and seeing the skateboarding ghost who’d crossed over only weeks earlier, “He’s here, I can see him.” </p><p>Luke and Reggie shared a glance before looking back to their best friend, the bassist shifting closer and pressing his face to Alex’s chest while Luke smoothed his fingers back through his blond hair. </p><p> </p><p>What they’d recently discovered in regards to their unfinished business, it was more of a when than a what, individually up to them when they crossed over, when their ghostly afterlife was (un)finished (business). </p><p>Willie had been the first to <em> leave </em>, eyes filled with tears and both his hands on Alex’s cheeks as he slowly disappeared from sight, the faint pearl of his laughter echoing around the group and his final words, “I’ll see you soon, hotdog.” </p><p>Alex had been hard to console after that, both of the boys telling Alex to join him, to join his partner of the last three and a half years, but he’d shook his head, pulling them in close and exhaling, “No.” He’d answered simply, his voice certain but resonating with pain. </p><p>And that’s how they’d ended up here, two weeks later, the three original ghost members of Sunset Curve on the black leather couch, surrounded by friends they’d acquired throughout their afterlife. </p><p>It looked symmetrical, Alex in the middle of the couch, Luke and Reggie on one side, holding his hands tightly, like they weren’t ready to let go (they weren’t), Julie and Nick one step further away, Julie sitting on the arm of the couch, her arm resting on Luke’s shoulder as he moved in closer to Alex, and Nick standing next to the couch on Reggie’s side, watching his boyfriend with red eyes, all of them emotionally and physically affected by the display. </p><p>“It’s okay.” Reggie’s voice came, always the strongest out of the three when it really mattered, his words stronger than expected as he pulled back, trying to catch a glance from Alex’s unfocused eyes. “Y-you can go to him.” </p><p>Alex exhaled, like his last breath was leaving him and squeezed both of their hands tightly, eyes still staring straight ahead, the skin of his cheeks starting to fade to translucent. </p><p>“I’ll see you soon.” The drummer promised the both of them, smiling through the tears that were running down his cheeks, the smile remaining on his lips until he fully disappeared from sight, leaving Luke and Reggie grasping at air. </p><p> </p><p>Nick laid close to Reggie that night, keeping his hands on the ghost at all times, like he was worried he was going to disappear. </p><p>It didn’t take long for Reggie to realise what was happening, the constant touching, the glances, he’d reassured the blond that his time wasn’t up, he wasn’t ready to go yet. </p><p> </p><p>Luke went next, Julie next to him, their foreheads pressed together silent words passing between the two of them, eyes wet with tears, both of his hands on Julie’s cheeks as he said his goodbyes. </p><p>They were on the couch in Julie's studio once again, the four of them settled on the black leather seats, all pressed against one another, like there weren’t other seats available in the room. </p><p>Nick had wondered why now, five months after Alex had passed over, what had changed between then and now? When would that happen to Reggie? </p><p>Luke pulled back enough from Julie to turn and look at Reggie, smiling at his best friend through the tears that blurred his vision, “No regrets.” He spoke, resulting in a nod from Reggie which caused several tears to fall from his eyes. </p><p>The guitarist leaned to reach for his hand, squeezing tightly as he looked over to Nick. “Take care of him for me, will you?” </p><p>Nick nodded at the words, no words of his own able to form on his tongue as he wrapped his arm around Reggie’s shoulder and held him tightly, Luke turned to glance back at Julie. </p><p>They’d been happy, the two of them, Luke and Julie, the band had been successful, they’d played sold out venues, written killer songs, one or two which had ended up platinum, and maybe that had been enough for the ghost, or maybe he missed Alex too much to continue to go on. </p><p>Their friendship had turned into a relationship and he’d followed Julie everywhere, always at her side, like there wasn’t anywhere else he was supposed to be. </p><p>“Now or never, right?” Luke’s laugh was breathless as he looked back to Julie, pulling her in close and pressing a kiss to her hair, closing his eyes as he nodded, his tense shoulders relaxing. </p><p>Nick closed his eyes, turning away from the other guitarist and trying to focus on Reggie who was still here with him, warm and solid under his fingers. </p><p>When he’d opened his eyes, the three of them remained on the couch, Julie immediately moving closer to Reggie who pulled her into a tight hug, the sound of sobbing filling the room. </p><p>
  <br/>
  <br/>
</p><p>“Why haven’t you gone yet, why are you still here?” His anxiety getting the better of him, his voice raised as he threw the words towards the bassist. </p><p>“I’m not ready.” Reggie had responded, like it was the simplest thing in the world. </p><p>It had been weeks since Luke had gone and months since Alex, the thought of Reggie leaving settled like a cloud over their relationship, blackening any happy moments, darkening everything. </p><p>Nick exhaled, dropping his head as he leant against the countertop in their kitchen, the one bedroom apartment that he’d moved into when his own band had started to get successful and had begun to sell out venues. </p><p>“Hey.” Reggie moved towards him, wrapping him into a hug and holding him close. </p><p>Nick swallowed thickly, inhaling deeply and allowing himself to be overcome by the sharp pine and faint leather smell that encompassed the bassist. </p><p>“<em> When </em> I’m ready to go, you’ll be the first to know.” Reggie promised, pressing a kiss to the top of his head as they stood in the white kitchen, his hands on Nick’s back, smoothing away his anxiety and worries. <br/><br/></p><p> </p><p>“I think I’m ready.” The words were so quiet that Nick almost missed them, his guitar almost slipping from his hands.</p><p>“When?” He breathed, his stomach churning, anxiety building within him. </p><p>“Now.” </p><p>Nick glanced at his partner, noting the absence of tears in his eyes, how his cheeks were white, not splotched with red like they usually were.</p><p>“Now?” He questioned, pulling his strap off over his head and settling his six string down, moving closer to the bassist and kneeling in front of the chair he was seated in. </p><p>Reggie nodded, a small smile on his features that reached his eyes, his hand reaching for Nick’s and grasping his fingers tightly. </p><p>“I-I’ll call Julie, and Flynn, and would you want Carl-.” </p><p>“No, Nick, just you.” </p><p>Nick looked up at the words, a stinging feeling settling in his eyes as his vision started to blur, “Just me?” He asked, voice quiet. </p><p>Reggie nodded again, his other hand moving to Nick’s cheek, his thumb sliding over his skin, catching a falling tear. “Just you.” He repeated, moving to slide back into the chair, leaving enough room next to him for Nick to slide in. </p><p>The guitarist moved, slotting into the space next to Reggie, wrapping their arms around each other and holding tight. </p><p>They sat in silence, the two of them unsure of how much time had passed, if had been minutes or hours, it wasn’t enough. </p><p>“Can you play for me?” Reggie questioned, smoothing Nick’s hair back from his face. </p><p>Nick glanced over towards his guitar, not willing to move away from Reggie, not wanting to be apart from him, not yet, not ever. </p><p>“Please?” The bassist’s voice came again. </p><p>Nick nodded after a few long moments, getting to his feet only stopped by Reggie pulling him back down and pulling him into a kiss, their lips moving together, not with fire or passion, but with something that tasted like a farewell. </p><p>“Now play me something.” Reggie spoke, his voice light as he pulled back from the kiss, the redness returning to his cheeks at the touch, a smile playing on his lips. </p><p>Nick laughed, the sound breathless as he moved to pick up his guitar, settling the strap around his shoulder and plucking at the strings, “What do you want to hear?” He questioned. </p><p>His question wasn’t answered, the silence that filled the room deafening. </p><p>“Reg?” Nick questioned as he turned to face an empty chair. </p><p><br/><br/>Reggie had been the last to leave, surrounded by family.</p>
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